Chapter 24

The three of us appeared in the evening shadows near the Officers' Mess at Fort Jefferson, and proceeded inside where we secured a table and ordered some ale while we waited for Captain Moore to appear. That gentleman arrived fifteen minutes or so later. He had on a clean and correct uniform and spotted us soon after entering.

"Good evening, Major O'Connell and also both of you lovely ladies," he said with a large smile.

"Have a seat and join us!" I requested.

"My pleasure, sir," he replied, as he drew out the remaining chair at the table. His meal soon arrived, and we discussed minor things while he ate.

"When does your current class graduate?" I asked, as his dishes were being removed by the staff.

"They graduated today and have tomorrow off. It's fortunate that you came tonight. I'm free until the morning two days from now. Have you been to Gilmore's Station yet by any chance?" he asked.

"Yes, I have been there twice. Once with Seamus and again today with a young Continental Lieutenant from Fort Washington," I told him.

"How was it?" he asked with some hesitation, but hadn't blinked at the mention of Fort Washington.

"It will require some repair. The blockhouse is in very good condition, but the stockade and some of the cabins need work," I told him.

"Is it near water that we can use?" he asked.

"Yes, it is located near Slate Creek off the Licking River just outside of the Peeled Oak settlement," I told him. "Since you are free tomorrow, would you like to inspect it then?"

"Yes, I believe that would be wise lest we move there and find it insufficient. We are borrowing a number of wagons and teams from the Quartermaster here to move our equipment and unit property," he told us.

"You have your own beds and other things then?" I asked.

"Yes, we are encumbered with quite a bit of property," he answered.

"Well, that will solve some problems," Gwyn said on hearing this.

"It will raise another one," Sererena injected. "We will need to set up a Portal from here to Gilmore's Station."

"Not directly," I told her. "A temporary Portal from their location here to Hickory Hill, and then a permanent Portal from Hickory Hill to Gilmore's Station, but it will need to be outside the station as there isn't room enough to turn wagons around inside the station."

"How about this instead?" Gwyn suggested. "Set up the portal inside the station, but situate it so that a wagon can come through it and go out of the station gates to turn around. It would be more secure that way."

"An excellent idea, Gwyn!" I told my older Sister. Even Sererena was smiling at the suggestion. Samuel Moore however stared at us with no sign of comprehension that he understood what we had been discussing.

"Think of a Portal as a gate, Captain. A Magic Gate that opens in one place and when you pass through it, you come out in another place," Gwyn told him with a smile. Comprehension dawned on the Captain's face.

"Put that way, it is understandable. You intend to position this 'Gate' at Gilmore's Station so that a wagon, when it comes through the 'Gate' will drive out of the station and turn around to return. Is that correct?" he asked.

"Yes, also that way several wagons can come through the gate, leave the station, turn around, and return to the station one at a time to unload before returning through the 'Gate'," Sererena told him.

"And if we should be under attack?" he asked in a cautious voice.

"The wagons could be backed through the gate one at a time if needed, or people could carry the supplies through the 'Gate' if necessary. You could also evacuate the station that way if necessary," Gwyn told him.

"And no one could follow us?" he asked to be sure.

"When the gate is closed there is nothing there but half of the two stones that it was created on to indicate where it was established. At Hickory Hill, we will have a lot of Portals and will have posts on either side of them to indicate the width of the gate and a sign indicating the destination," Gwyn told him.

"So when the 'Gate' is closed, one could walk through the area that it occupies without disappearing then?" Samuel asked.

"Yes, when a Portal is closed, there is really nothing there," Sererena assured him.

"We will need to establish Portals to Mount Sterling and Fort Washington also and quickly," Gwyn reminded me.

"Yes, we should start on that tomorrow," I agreed. "But after Captain Moore has had a chance to look at Gilmore's Station," I told them.

"Would early tomorrow morning be convenient for me to pick you up, Samuel?" I asked him.

"Why don't we just take him to Hickory Hill tonight? Then he would be ready to leave in the morning without needing to return here," Gwyn suggested.

"Where will he sleep tonight?" I asked her.

"Oh, we will find someplace for him to sleep tonight," she assured me in that honey sweet voice of hers that meant sex.

"Yes, that's a good idea. Then we can return him later," Sererena added in not quite so smooth a voice.

"That sounds all right," Samuel agreed. We all finished our ale before leaving the Officers' Mess. Outside in the shadows, Gwyn cast the transfer spell drawing on all of our Magic, even that of Captain Moore.

We instantly appeared in the large parlor at Hickory Hill. The two Magic-powered lamps that had been added to the chandelier were presently set on low power. Sererena increased their output to better light the room.

"Welcome to Hickory Hill," both women said as Samuel Moore stared around him in astonishment. However, he didn't ask about the furniture, the room, or even the house when he recovered.

"What did I feel you do?" he asked, after a short time.

"We drew on a part of your Talent to help power the spell that brought us here," Gwyn told the still astonished Captain.

"But I don't know anything about Magic!" he insisted.

"No, but you do have a minor Talent, Samuel," I told him. "Enough that you could achieve Second Level in the Magical hierarchy with study," I told him to an even more astonished look on his face.

"We would be glad to teach you to use your Talent when you have time," Sererena assured the still startled Captain.

"It's late and we need to get an early start in the morning. I'm off to bed," I told them. "Make sure that Samuel is comfortable for the night," I added to the two women, who only smiled. Gwyn and Samuel disappeared before I had even left the room. Sererena just sighed.

"At least tomorrow night I will have him," she told me.

"How did you two decide who he would be with tonight?" I asked, realizing that this had been their intention all along.

"We matched at the table. Gwyn won. She and Glanda probably have him naked already!" Sererena told me in a disgusted voice.

"And you and Saraid wouldn't?" I asked.

"Weeell ... probably, we would!" she answered with a giggle. I made it a point to walk up the stairs to my room and not to notice the privacy spell and the noise suppression spell around Gwyn and Glanda's room.

It was relatively late the next morning when Samuel, Gwyn, and Glanda appeared for breakfast. Gwyn and Glanda just glowed and were as happy as could be. Samuel looked a little tired, but not at all unhappy. Most of the regular chores had been finished, and I had already collected the materials that I would need to create a Portal connecting Hickory Hill and Gilmore's Station. I had also gone with Sererena to stand between the posts that held the sign for Gilmore's Station.

After a good breakfast served by our new cooks, I pulled Seamus and Wolf aside to speak to them.

"I will be creating the Portal to Gilmore's Station today when I take Captain Moore out there. Each of you should also create the Portal from the other forts where we are setting up. Seamus, check if there is room to turn a couple of wagons around inside Fort Washington. Wolf, set up the Portal at Mount Sterling so the wagons can be driven out of the fort to turn around before returning to be unloaded and returning here," I told them. "Check with Sererena for the correct location for them here," I reminded them.

"That will definitely make it easier to move things between the various locations," Seamus agreed. I collected Samuel Moore when he had finished his breakfast and before my Sisters or Cousins could spirit him away.

"Are you ready to inspect Gilmore's Station?" I asked him when he had risen from the table.

"Most definitely, sir," he answered.

"Call me Mark when we are alone or here with the others. There is no requirement for Military titles in private," I told him.

"All right ... Mark," he agreed. Outside, I picked up the materials needed for the Portal, and Samuel and I vanished to reappear at Gilmore's Station.

"You know I could get used to this form of transportation," Samuel told me after looking around at the station for a short time.

"This place is in better shape than I had feared it would be. It shouldn't require long to have things repaired and ready for the next class. In fact, it will be a lot closer to most of their homes than Fort Jefferson was. We can have them report to either Fort Henry at Lexington or directly here," he told me with a smile.

"We may need to set up a Portal to Fort Henry. That way there would be no travel time involved and you could take care of their administrative and pay issues directly," I told him.

"Where would you put it?" he asked.

"In one of the buildings here and in a small shell that we can set up outside Fort Henry. The Portal would only need to be man size," I told him.

"Shell?" he asked, not understanding.

"Yes, like the one surrounding this station, only smaller," I told him, as I tinted the shell here a light green. Samuel was startled as the sunlight took on a green tint.

"What is that and where did that come from?" he asked on looking around at the extent of the defensive shell covering the station.

"That is a Defensive Shell. Seamus and I created it when we were here initially," I told him. "It's about one hundred and twenty feet in diameter to cover everything, and it extends sixty feet above the ground at its highest point."

"And it does what?" he asked.

"It keeps people and animals out. It will also stop musket, rifle, and cannon fire," I told him. "I will change it to an open shell before you move in so that smoke from cooking fires and other sources can escape. In the winter, it can be changed back to a closed shell again with vents to allow the smoke out, but keep the snow and wind from entering," I told him.

"And just how do WE get in and out of it?" he asked noting that the shell was continuous with no openings.

"We can create warded openings. I will need to station one of our people who has learned the proper spells here to open and close the shell and the wards plus he will be able to activate the Portals for you," I told him. We made a detailed inspection of the Station after that, and Samuel made notes on the materials that would be needed to do the repairs. Later we checked the area outside the Station. Samuel was much more delighted with the conditions that he found there than Fredrick had been previously.

"Yes, this area will be excellent for our training. Actually even better than where we were in the Land Between the Rivers, as this is closer to the actual conditions most of them will be operating in," he told me before we returned to the Station after also visiting the Peeled Oak settlement.

"Where would you like me to set up the Portal? Remember that the supply wagons will be coming through it and will need to turn around to return," I reminded him. We both checked out several alignments and finally decided on the best one. I placed the two stones on the ground at the correct distance apart to accommodate a heavy wagon and team with room to spare and then cast the spell for the Portal. The field to one side of the main house at Hickory Hill appeared through it, and we walked through the Portal. I closed it after we were well past it. Samuel was just staring at me again.

"That's almost better than the transfer thing!" he said in amazement. "It's just like walking through a gate like Gwyn said last night," he told me, and looked embarrassed.

"I shouldn't have used her first name," he said apologetically after that.

"There are so many of us that first names are just about mandatory to identify the correct O'Connell," I told him.

"Your twin Sisters are very ... aggressive," he said after a little time and somewhat embarrassed. "They certainly know what they like. Do they always... ? Are they always together for... ?" he hesitantly asked.

"For sex -- yes! They are looking for One Husband for the Two of them, as are my other twin Sisters and Cousins," I told him.

"I ... I don't know if I could deal with a lifetime of that!" he told me in an unsure voice.

"Don't worry about it. They are still looking for a Husband with a Talent as strong as theirs," I told him.

"How strong is their Talent? I could feel it last night when we... ! But I have no idea how strong that was," he said, embarrassed again.

"They are both Senior Masters, as are most of my Sisters and Cousins," I told him.